This week on “Up Close,” there are times when those in charge of a country act with seemingly complete disregard for the law. We saw that in the United States with former President Richard Nixon. To a differing extent and in a different way, the Soviet Union saw it with Josef Stalin. But how did that culture of illegality develop, and how did those around them react?

The culture of law-breaking and secrecy in Richard Nixon’s administration is examined by USA Today Washington Enterprise Editor Ray Locker, in Nixon’s Gamble: How a President’s Own Secret Government Destroyed His Administration.

And then, telling stories about one of the most damaging governments in the 20th century, is University of Sydney Professor Sheila Fitzpatrick, author of On Stalin’s Team: The Years of Living Dangerously in Soviet Politics.